Discovered by R. S. Dugan Alternative names 1903 LU Aphelion 3.756248648 AU Discoverer Raymond Smith Dugan | Discovery date May 30, 1903 Minor planet category Main belt Discovered 30 May 1903 Orbits Sun | |
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Pronunciation /dəˈvaɪdə/ or /ˈdævᵻdə/ Discovery site Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Observatory Similar 704 Interamnia, Solar System, 15 Eunomia, Asteroid belt, Sun | ||
Asteroid 511 davida
511 Davida is a large C-type asteroid in the asteroid belt. It was discovered by R. S. Dugan in 1903. It is one of the ten most-massive asteroids, and the 7th-largest asteroid. It is approximately 270–310 km in diameter and comprises an estimated 1.5% of the total mass of the asteroid belt. It is a C-type asteroid, which means that it is dark in colouring with a carbonaceous chondrite composition.
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Davida is one of the few main-belt asteroids whose shape has been determined by ground-based visual observation. From 2002 to 2007, astronomers at the Keck Observatory used the Keck II telescope, which is fitted with adaptive optics, to photograph Davida. The asteroid is not a dwarf planet: there are at least two promontories and at least one flat facet with 15-km deviations from a best-fit ellipsoid. The facet is presumably a 150-km global-scale crater like the ones seen on 253 Mathilde. Conrad et al. (2007) show that craters of this size "can be expected from the impactor size distribution, without likelihood of catastrophic disruption of Davida."
Davida is named after David Peck Todd, an astronomy professor at Amherst College.
511 davida top 6 facts
Mass
In 2001, Michalak estimated Davida to have a mass of (7000664000000000000♠6.64±0.56)×1019 kg In 2007, Baer and Chesley estimated Davida to have a mass of (7000590000000000000♠5.9±0.6)×1019 kg. As of 2010, Baer suggests Davida has a mass of (7000384000000000000♠3.84±0.20)×1019 kg. This most recent estimate by Baer suggests that Davida is less massive than 704 Interamnia, making Davida the sixth-most-massive asteroid, though the error bars overlap.
Occultations
Davida occulted a magnitude-13.3 star on July 14, 2011. Davida occulted the star TYC 0079-00234-1 on August 5, 2013. The event was visible over Argentina and Chile, with Davida at magnitude 11.7 and the star at mag 9.4.